Robert Bell's

Wines of Canada

Since 1992

 


Salmon-Safe

Salmon Safe works to keep our urban and agricultural watersheds clean enough for native salmon to spawn and thrive.Pacific Salmon Foundation (PSF)  and Fraser Basin Council joined forces in 2010 to launch Salmon-Safe BC with pioneering growers. To date, more than 40 farms and vineyards across British Columbia have achieved Salmon-Safe certification

Salmon-Safe, which has been highly effective in Oregon, Washington State and California, is an eco-certification program that encourages farmers to use agricultural practices that protect Pacific salmon habitat and water quality. Farms are evaluated by independent, professional certifiers. Once certified, farms are designated “SalmonSafe” and receive a seal of approval to include on product packaging and marketing materials. Since the program’s inception in the United States, 300 farms have been certified as “Salmon-Safe” representing a total of 60,000 acres. Salmon-Safe piloting in British Columbia took place in 2010/11 with the generous financial support of the RBC Blue Water initiative and Fraser Salmon and Watershed Program, a joint initiative of the Pacific Salmon Foundation and Fraser Basin Council. The pilot included a technical review of existing Salmon-Safe farm standards, which assessed the appropriateness of the standards within the Canadian and B.C. regulatory contexts. The standards were field-tested with 21 farms to assess both the technical and cultural fit of the standards in B.C.

What does Salmon Safe mean?
Salmon-Safe land management involves conservation practices that benefit the watershed where the farm or other site is located. Land managers can do much to promote healthy landscapes for salmon by planting trees along riparian areas, improving irrigation systems, erosion control, and being good stewards of the land. On a product, the Salmon-Safe logo refers to how the crop is produced, not to the food or beverage product itself.
Salmon-Safe is an independent third-party certification program that helps educate land users, retailers and consumers about the importance of protecting healthy and functioning ecosystems and watersheds that are essential to Pacific salmon.
Participants in the Salmon-Safe program may include a vineyard, organic vegetable farm, cattle ranch or urban developer, but they all share the common concern for sustaining Pacific salmon.
The Salmon-Safe B.C. eco-certification label tells retailers and consumers that the product was produced in a way that helps protect Pacific salmon

What is the Salmon-Safe farm certification program?
When a farm is certified, it means the land is managed according to standards that are verified independently. Based on Salmon-Safe’s certification process, an operation is considered Salmon-Safe when both its impact upon the aquatic ecosystem is assessed and any negative impacts on water quality and fish habitat are minimized.
The Salmon-Safe farm certification program is focused on management practices in six primary areas: riparian area management, water use management, erosion and sediment control, integrated pest management, animal management, and biodiversity conservation.
Salmon-safe certification includes extensive on-site inspection by qualified inspectors to ensure that growers are meeting the standards which have been set

By following Salmon-Safe standards, farmers help protect stream habitat and water quality by:
 Maintaining a buffer of trees and vegetation along the stream banks
 Controlling erosion by cover cropping bare soil
 Improving passage for migrating fish
 Applying natural methods to control weeds and farm pests
 Using efficient irrigation practices
 Controlling impacts from breeding and caring for farm animals
 Protecting wetlands, woodlands, and other natural areas
 Promoting plant and wildlife diversity on their farms

Covert Farms is nestled at the foot of McIntyre Bluff

How a winery becomes certified,

the winery owners/managers are required to go through a site assessment and the process is rather simple.

Once contacted by an interested winery, we ask them to review our standards to make sure they comply with all of the mandatory general standards (e.g. not being in violation of any environmental law, water rights, etc.) and that they are willing to comply with the remaining Salmon-Safe standards. We then have a phone conversation to get some information and schedule a farm visit with our independent inspector, who assesses the farming practices against the Salmon-Safe standards. Farmers are required to prepare some baseline information and documentation for the site visit (e.g. farm map, pesticide records, etc.), which usually takes about 2-3 hours, depending on the size and complexity of the property. When the assessment is complete, our inspector puts together a report and a certification decision is made. The certification lasts 3 years, after which a second assessment is required to keep the Salmon-Safe status.

 

Costanza Testino
Program Manager, Salmon-Safe B.C.
Pacific Salmon Foundation

www.salmonsafe.ca

 

Certified B.C. Winegrowers’

Covert Farms, Oliver
Culmina Family Estate Winery, Oliver
Harker’s Organics, Cawston ( Rustic Roots Winery)
Inniskillin Okanagan, Oliver
Jackson-Trigg Okanagan, Oliver
Kalala Organic Estate Winery and Vineyards, West Kelowna
Tinhorn Creek, Oliver
Sage Hill Wines, Summerland
3Cru / Mariposa Vineyard, Cawston
See Ya Later Ranch, Okanagan Falls
Seven Stones Winery, Cawston
Sumac Ridge. Summerland
Nk’mip Vineyards, Osoyoos
St. Hubertus & Oak Bay Family Estate Winery, Kelowna
VinPerdu Cellars, Oliver

Organic Wines

Please contact us if you are a Organic, Biodynamic Certified and or Salmon-safe winery or vineyard

 

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